- ILO Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), the so called "ILO Super Convention" is expected to enter into force on August the 20th as the 4th pillar of Maritime Regulatory Compliance along with SOLAS, MARPOL, STCW. As the clock is ticking towards the deadline let's see if the MLC will deliver the promised land by examining some key issues involved:   Myths about MLC MLC Will NOT necessarily provide for Seafarer rights as long as every "Shipowner" may select a flag that does not ratify MLC. Since MLC certificate is NOT a trading certificate, there is nothing that can change that. Many industy insiders speculate that MLC will certainly improve the situation onboard. This may be the case for the owner/manager of ICEBERG 1 (the vessel abandoned for 3 years to Somali Pirates) and the like; but for first class operators (especially in the Cruise, Tanker, LNG, Container industry) there are minor issues to be addressed ! If someone sticks to the regulatory nature of MLC, he has to also ask himself: Has SOLAS or MARPOL or STCW introduction improved the shipping industry? The answer is definitely NOT! All these regulations exist for many years; we are currently running 100 years...

- Shipping industry is facing a regulatory storm, including among other things the implementation of ILO MLC 2006 by August 20th of 2013 globally. There are many peculiarities related with ILO MLC, the most spicy one is with the deadline due. In case your flag state has ratified MLC by August 20th 2012 the deadline is by August the 20th 2013. In case your flag ratifies MLC after that date, say for example on 1st of February of 2013 then the deadline is by the 1st of February 2014, i.e. 12 months later. If your flag does NOT ratify the MLC you are not responsible for implementation. Is this correct ? Well, not exactly ... Actually in line with the "NO more favorable treatment" principle of the MLC vessel will be subject to inspection by PSC worldwide and especially to countries that they have ratified MLC already (e.g. Netherlands, Australia etc.). To implement MLC you will need the DMLC part I that will be issued by the Flag state accompanied by DMLC part II that will be developed by the "Shipowner" i.e. most probably the DOC holder for the vessel, accompanied by a set of procedures, forms, posters and checklists...

- Despite the fact that the new STCW has been accepted by a diplomatic conference in Manila back in June 2010, unfortunately many industry stakeholders are not aware of the implications of the new requirements and as a result they have not addressed their safeguards properly. What we will do is to assess the implications of the new STCW from the ship manager side. The area that need to be properly addressed are the following: 1. Onboard Familiarization The new STCW has certain provisions for more extensive familiarization. It's not only basic safety. It's safety, security, environment, emergency and equipment specific training. If you go to previous STCW you might have generic equipment training requirements. Now there are specific requirements plus responsibilities for both the seafarer and the ship captain. 2. Ship Specific Familiarisation Many people read the new STCW and cannot find the requirement about the ECDIS type specific training. Believe me it's there. It is B-I/14 regarding Guidance to Companies contains EXTENSIVE responsibilities for master, officers and crew to get familiarization and more effort (liability) to be addressed e.g. in way of : ECDIS Free Fall Life Boats Oil Water Separator & Systems Incinerator Ballast Water Treatment Systems...

As you are well aware of IMO has amended the "fitness for duty - hours of rest" requirements to provide watchkeeping officers aboard ships with sufficient rest periods at the Diplomatic Conference to adopt amendments to the STCW Convention, (successfully completed in Manila on 25 June 2010 ).

IMO Greenhouse gas regulations: Is it over yet? Earlier this month the IMO adopted the first-ever greenhouse gas (GHG) regulations to be applied in the marine industry. It is considered the first industry wide global agreement. For many years shipping has been totally unregulated in terms of Greenhouse gas emissions and many within the industry still are not aware of the fact that shipping and aviation have been left out of the Kyoto protocol. The IMO legislation due to be implemented within the next 18 months covers all oceangoing vessels above the 400 tons line. All vessels need to be equipped with a new certificate on Energy Efficiency, a vessel specific Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) that will cover all the energy efficiency initiatives onboard and the new vessels, built after 2013 need to be attached with a new index called Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) to measure compliance. Ships built in or after 2013 will have to improve their efficiency by 10 percent; starting in 2020, new ships will have to be at least 20 percent more efficient than today's new ships; and after 2024, new ships will have to be at least 30 percent more efficient. Despite the...